China’s central bank has opened an investigation into the companies and people behind Solana’s activities in China. It also confirmed on November 6 that authorities stopped Solana’s Shanghai event before doors opened.
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) said promoting Solana (SOL) itself breaks Beijing’s crypto rules. That puts Solana’s local partners at legal risk and clouds its push to win Chinese software developers.
What Did China’s Central Bank Say About Solana?
The PBOC spoke through Financial News, a newspaper the central bank runs. An unnamed department head reportedly gave the paper an exclusive interview.
The official said monitoring showed Solana using a domestic company to run high-profile ads for its brand and coin. Those ads appeared on the outside wall of the Citigroup Tower in Lujiazui, Shanghai’s main financial district.
The PBOC worked with local financial regulators, police, and market supervisors to stop the event, called Solana Accelerate China 2026.
It will now investigate the companies and individuals involved.
The official gave two reasons:
- SOL is a virtual currency, and
- Solana provides technology used to issue and trade tokens such as Tether’s dollar-pegged USDT.
Both count as illegal financial activity under a February 2026 notice from eight Chinese agencies. That notice, reported by Xinhua, also bars overseas firms from offering crypto services to mainland users without approval.
Why Did Solana Blame Logistics?
The Shanghai stop was set for October 16 at the Shangri-La Hotel. That morning, organizers emailed guests that venue logistics had forced a postponement.
The email did not mention police. BeInCrypto reported that day that officers kept guests outside for more than an hour. The PBOC account now confirms authorities halted the event.
Solana Foundation President Lily Liu later said registrations had quadrupled overnight, passing the attendance cap filed with local authorities. She cited overcrowding risk and local requirements, not a regulatory order.
Binance founder Changpeng Zhao (CZ) asked on X whether organizers understood local policy. Days earlier, he had praised Solana’s new Shanghai office as a step BNB Chain had not managed.
It was not Solana’s first brush with Chinese police.
In October 2025, officers questioned its Accelerate APAC event in Shenzhen, and organizers cut a hackathon session.
Is Solana Banned in China, and What Happens to SOL?
Mainland China has banned crypto trading since 2021. Chinese residents already could not legally buy SOL at home before this statement.
Financial News framed the action as a continuation of that policy. The PBOC named no companies, people, or penalties.
Its next targets are domestic crypto traders and the mainland arms of overseas crypto platforms. That puts staff, contractors, and partner firms working for foreign networks inside China most directly in the line of fire.
SOL traded at $90.05 as of this writing, down 7% in 24 hours. This decline may not be limited to the China situation, as the broader crypto market remains down.
The tour had also listed stops in Hangzhou, Shenzhen, and Beijing. The PBOC said events in Shanghai and other locations were halted.
The case shows where Beijing draws its line. It is building its own national blockchain network while treating public tokens, and their marketers, as illegal finance.
